Hope's On Fire
by fadedwolves
Summary: Aeldea lived a very calm life until her family was killed and she was thrown out into the world. She finds herself in Mirkwood after being injured. Although hesitant Thranduil helps her. Over time he finds himself grow fond of her but life's upsets and dangers get in between them time and time again. Thranduil/OC Starts before the Hobbit/AUJ/DOS and continues through them.
1. Chapter 1: Can't Help Looking Back

**Author's Note:** This is my first Hobbit related story, I'm rather new to the Hobbit/Lord of the Rings so if I make any mistakes with continuity of the movies/books I apologize.

Aeldes (a-el-des) Húrnith (hur-nith)

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The leaves made soft sounds as the wind moved through them gently, pulling some of the orange and gold leaves to the ground. In front of her, her sister hopped from rock to rock skillfully moving towards the river.

"Come on Aeldes!" she shouted turning to her sister shooting her a smile. "Perhaps I should have left you at The Shire!" she said with a hearty laugh. "Sometimes I think I'm more of an elf than you!"

Her sister, Húrnith always had joked that she was truly a hobbit at heart. They're mother was a human and their father an elf. Aeldes had taken after her father, pointy ears, a pale complexion, and very slow ageing while Húrnith had taken after their mother with darker skin and freckles but they both shared their mothers red hair. While Húrnith had always searched for the daring and dangerous looking for adventure around ever corner Aeldes found that sitting by the window with a good book was good enough for her. The sisters were twins but even when Húrnith was only eighteen she was making trips to Laketown and visiting many different places. As time went on she took many more adventures, seeing the Shire, Rivendell and many more places.

"Hurry up, I want to get home before dark." she shouted seeing her sister stuck in thought. Aeldes picked up the pace moving across the slippery river rocks. As she neared the other edge her foot gave out causing her to slip.

"Gotcha." her sister said with a sly grin, holding her arm.

They continued through the forest the wind and chirping birds the only sound to be heard. Aeldes found herself walking into Húrnith's arm. She looked to her sister and she gave her a look to be silent. A rustling could be heard ahead of them. She drew her sword pointing it to the bush only for a small bunny to hop out and run off.

"Watch out, killer rabbit might get you." Aeldes said with a laugh.

"Better to be safe than sorry." she said sliding the sword back into it's sheath on her back.

"Where did you get that sword?" she asked catching a glimpse of elvish cravings in the handle.

"Troll cave of course, on my last adventure. You should have come with, it was very exciting." she commented.  
Aeldes didn't answer rather she thought of what it would be like going on an adventure. She imagined standing on a cliff side letting the air move through her hair, fighting creatures she had never seen in person, meeting new people and seeing new places.

"Perhaps next time." she told Húrnith. Her sister turned grinning, slightly caught off guard by the statement.

"You'll love it. Now come on." she said before running quickly. The two ran side by side through the forest, dodging trees and hopping over stray branches. It wasn't long before they reached a large tree. Húrnith stopped grabbing on to the branches and pulling herself up. Aeldes followed branch after branch before they reached the top of the great tree. As Aeldes peered over the top of all the branches she gasped at the beauty of the sight. With the sky as clear as it was today you could see for miles and miles, the autumn colors of the trees looked like an ocean of leaves. In the distance she could see the lonely mountain of Erebor.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Húrnith asked looking to her sister. Aeldes was at a loss for words, the view was amazing. She turned to her sister.

"Let me know when you're heading out on that next adventure." she said with a smile.

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Snow rested across the ground giving the forest a peaceful silence. Her gaze was drowsy as she sat perched in her favorite chair by the window, looking out and watching the small flakes slowing fall to middle earth. Her father and mother sat on the couch near the fireplace sitting close together as her twin sat in a armchair reading a book all of them taking comfort in the fire. Her head rested against the back of the chair as she began to drift off in to sleep.

"Aeldes." the voice was soft in the distance. She opened her eyes to find herself in the middle of a forest but it wasn't any forest she had seen before. "Aeldes." the voice beckoned again and she followed it, moving slowly through the thick snow, trees surrounded her on both side forming a lane. She saw something ahead of her. Approaching it she knelled down picking it up in her hand. It was a child's garment, her head turned as she wondered why it would be in the middle of a forest before she could finish the thought smoke began rising from the cloth, embers burning at the edges. She dropped it pulling her hand close to her with a hiss, the heat burning her hands. Even in the snow the cloth was consumed in flames. She expected the flames to go out but they spread across the ground covering the trees. She stepped back, guarding her face from the heat. In a faint whisper on the wind she heard "It will consume everything." so quietly she wasn't even sure it had been said. She kept moving back as the flames continued to spread.

"Aeldes." a voice yelled startling her out of sleep. Her father stood over her, grasping her arm pulling her to her feet. "You must go, with your sister quickly." he said looking to Húrnith. She was currently pulling on a cape along with her quiver and bow. "Grab your-" his sentence was cut short by a loud crack. "There's no time, go now." he said pushing her towards Húrnith.

"What's happening?" she asked confused. Her father stopped for a moment before looking to her.

"They're coming, the laoch. There's no time to explain." he said before hugging her tightly. "Remember that I love you, I love you so much." he said his eyes watering. Her mother moved quickly towards her embracing her before kissing her cheek.

"I love you, be safe." she said before letting go. Her sister grabbed her gently by her arm pulling her out the door. As the fled the home she looked back to see her parents holding weapons up, ready for attack before hooded figures crashed through the windows. She was about to let out a scream before her sister covered her mouth.

"They'll follow us, if we move quick it will take them longer to track us." They ran, her sister moving quick despite having to fight with the deep snow while she didn't have any trouble with it.

"Do you know what's happening?" she asked her sister desperately. "Because I was never aware we were in any danger out here." her sisters disposition was covered, she wasn't being Húrnith right now, she was being a warrior, a protector.

"A long time ago, before father met mother he was a part of an elite warriors group. They were to keep their kingdom safe. The Iaoch are a terrible group of warriors seeking to take land and destroy what ever got in their way, villages full of innocent men, women, and children. Our father helped get rid of them, got rid of their bases. They were all gone. Until recently, they hid and grew in numbers and they have been hunting down every person in the group. Killing them, theirwives, their children, whatever was dear to them." she explained, her force strained as they kept running.

"Why did he never tell me?" Aeldes asked, trying to stay calm but the thought of the Iaoch in her home with her parents kept pushing into her thoughts.

"Aeldes, you've always been more hobbit than elf and I more elf than human. He didn't want to stress you out for no reason." she explained.

"No reason?" she shouted. Húrnith shot her a look telling her to quiet. "I am running through the snow without a cape after I had been peacefully sleeping. Perhaps if anyone told me anything I could have prepared, could have trained more with a sword, just knowing that we could be attacked at any day would be nice!" she shouted again, her anger getting the better of her. "No one has ever told me anything, I'm not a child. I am minutes younger than you and yet I'm treated as if I still drink milk out a bottle!" Before Húrnith could reply a sharp howl broke the silence of the forest. Húrnith looked to Aeldes, shock on her face.

"Wolves! Hurry!" she yelled. They both picked up their pace, Aeldes moved fast trees passing her by. When she looked back her sister was far behind fighting to get through the deep snow. She ran back grabbing her sisters arm.

"Come on." she said pulling her through the snow.

"It's no use." Húrnith's gaze met her's. "We'll both be killed at this rate. Get out of here."

"I won't leave you to die!"

"Aeldes, be realistic. Go, go and become an amazing person. Be the characters you've read about so much, be a hero. You have so much time to have so many adventures." she pulled her sword off her back. "Take this, and stay alive. I love you." she said before letting go of her sisters hand. "Go."

Aeldes nodded weakly taking the sword in her shaky hands holding back tears. She turned around running as quick as she ever had, her lungs burning with the cold air. She heard wolves let out shrieks, she looked back to see Húrnith firing arrows at the wolves as hooded figures approached her. Aeldes tripped and fell into a tree, ripping her pant leg open, she got up and continued running, the sword clutched in her hand.

It felt as if her legs were going to give out from all the running when she heard footsteps and growls. She looked back to see them gaining on her. She moved faster but it was no use against the wolves. She fell to the ground as a wolf latched onto her arm, she let out a small scream. She had almost forgotten about the sword she now possessed. She thrust the blade towards the wolf causing it to let go. She moved to her feet before holding the blade in front of herself ready to attack. Another wolf lunged at her and she cut it down before plunging the blade through it's chest, cringing inside at the brutality. The hooded figures approached her, one made a move to attack her with a sword and she blocked it. She was surprised the she could hold her own with as little training as she had. She let out a hiss as the figure caught her side with his blade but she continued to fight back. She fought with everything she had but it wasn't enough, her sword was knocked out of her hand leaving a gash across the back of her hand.

The bark of a tree met her back harshly as she stumbled back flinching away from the attacker. She covered her face with her arms closing her eyes, this was it, she was the last of her family and she would be gone. The blow she waited for never came. She opened her eyes, looking around cautiously. Rather than being surrounded by hooded figures she was surrounded by soldiers, one standing out among them. His hair was a bright shade of blond, his sharp ears pointing out from underneath. He had a youthful look about him weather he was young or not she was not sure.

"Where am I?" she asked quietly her voice weak from so many things.

"The outskirts of Mirkwood." he replied stepping towards her. He seemed to relax upon seeing that she wasn't a threat. "Are you okay?"

"I-" she wasn't sure how to reply to that, she would usually always say yes despite what the true answer was but this time it felt she was so not okay that it didn't seem appropriate. Before she could answer she was hit with a wave of dizziness. Her hand brushed her side finding blood pouring from the gash there. Then everything went black.

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The Elvenking of Mirkwood was not known to be kind or generous to outsiders and while many saw this as cruelty he did not. Those who thought him cruel were misinformed. His main duty as king was to keep his people safe and that was what he did. If he were to help every stray that came along his kingdom and people would be exhausted and that could leave the vulnerable to attack. If not another kingdom they were in danger of their very own forest, growing darker and darker in time. When he caught word of someone found on the outskirts his first thoughts were to have them escorted out, only when his son Legolas had protested did he listen. He informed him that it was a young elf girl that was being chased by a group. While he wasn't ready to roll out the welcome mat he did permit his son to bring her in to be healed.

As he sad upon his throne in his halls he waited for his son to join him to give him a report of what had happened. Legolas entered the room standing at the foot of his throne. With out a word he began explaining what had happened.

"We found her being chase by these men, we believe they were the Ioach." he explained.

"The Ioach?" he repeated before standing and walking down the steps to his son. He pace the floor. "They have never been seen near Mirkwood. They were after her for a reason. Was she carrying anything of worth?"

"No, nothing but a sword. She was out in the snow without a coat or cloak. She was freezing , I wouldn't be surprised if she had been chased for quite a while."

"When she wakes she can explain what happened. Then we will decide what to do with her." he said before returning to his throne. Legolas left the halls, returning to see how the girl was doing.

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**Author's Note:** I hope you enjoyed the story.I'd be happy to have a beta reader to help me out with grammar, mine isn't the best. Oh and just as a head's up she isn't going to be a super weak character that just get's in a lot of danger. I know some people don't care for those types of characters.

A song to go along with the chapter is Runaway by Yeah Yeah Yeahs


	2. Chapter 2: Dust Through the Light

**Author's Note:** Thank you for all of the reviews. I went back and edited the first chapter to fix some grammar errors so hopefully it looks better now. A good song to go along with this chapter is Perth by Bon Iver.

Sídhon (sîdh-on) Garavon (garaf-on)

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"Aeldes." a voice whispered on the wind. Her eyes opened slowly. She pressed a hand to her forehead. Had it been a dream? Her eyes scanned the room, she was in her room. Her hand moved to her side, there was no wound. No gash across the top of her hand. It was a bad nightmare. She got up slowly as if one quick move and the world would fall apart. She walked down stairs to see her mother and father standing in the kitchen talking and laughing as her sister sat on a chair sharpening her sword. As she went to greet them a loud crack echoed and everything changed to dark colors. Her sister stood sat there, arrows embedded in her ribs, blood covering her wounds. Her father and mother stood with blood covering their throats and blank looks on their faces. Aeldes went to scream but before she could she awoke with a gasp.

Her hands searched desperately for something to hold onto as her breaths came and went violently. She sat up looking around on to see elegant walls around her, a window let in the dark moon lit sky. She looked down to herself she was dressed in a white dress with no sleeves. Her side ached with some amount of pain, nothing compared to before. Her hand was no wrapped in a white cloth, some blood seeping through. She moved to get out of the bed her bare feet touching the cold ground. She stood up and found that there was another layer to the dress laying on a chest in front of the bed. She grabbed it gently touching the soft fabric. She slid the long sleeved garment over her arms it guarding her from the chill in the air.

A mirror on the wall caught her eye, she looked into it seeing her own reflection. The spot under her eyes were dark with exhaustion a large gash stretch across her forehead through her right eyebrow along with other flecks of scratches across her face. As she gazed into the mirror for a moment she saw a flash of her sister's face in the place of hers. Her sister's face was far worse off than hers. She gasped falling to the ground clutching her chest. Her hands moved to her face as thoughts flooded her mind. If she was stronger she could have fought them off with her sister. She could have saved her, if not for her parents she could have had her sister with her. It suddenly hit her how alone she was in the world. The guilt of her sister's death laid heavy on her.

The door creaked open and there stood the elf she had seen before. A concerned look passed over his face as he found her on the ground. He walked over to her side quickly. She found herself embarrassed that he walked in during her small breakdown.

"Are you okay?" he asked.

"I'm fine now." she said. That wasn't wholly true but she didn't want to talk about anything right now. He held his hand out to her and helped her to her feet.

"The king requested to see you." he told her. She felt herself grow tense. She had heard of the Elvenking Thranduil but she didn't know much about him. One thing she did know was that he was not like Elrond. She doubted he would warmly welcome her. "I'm Legolas by the way. May I ask your name?"

"Aeldes." she answered him. He lead her out of the room through the halls. She found herself thinking of many different scenarios that could happen. That merely increased her anxiety over the situation. Before she knew it they reached the large doors and Legolas lead her in. The room was large, her eyes immediately moved to the large throne in the room. Stairs lead up to the throne with large antler across it's back. In it sat Thranduil. His legs were crossed and his hands laid casually in his lap. His chin was held high and his gaze was sharp. As her and Legolas approached his gaze followed her closely. She couldn't help but feel tense like her chest was bound tightly. No matter how much she tried to breathe in she couldn't get enough air. They stood near the base of the throne as silence was in the air.

"What is your name?" he finally asked.

"Aeldes." she said trying to keep her voice from sounding too weak. There was a tense pause.

"Where do you come from?"

"I lived with my family not to far from here, in the forest." she replied.

"You're the daughter of Sídhon?"

"Yes." she wondered how Thranduil knew of her father but didn't feel brave enough to ask about it. Once again silence filled the room. She wondered if he was actually thinking of anything or if he was merely trying to make her grow uneasy.

"Why were you being chased by the Iaoch?" he questioned after the long silence.

"My father, he used to live in Rivendell. He hunted the Iaoch when Elrond sought to get rid of them. They have been hunting down the elves that hand nearly gotten rid of all of them." she explained. "I was running from them." her eyes left him and gazed off. "My parents were left behind, so was my sister." A part of her wanted to hold onto some sort of hope that she would return and find them in their home.

"You may stay here until you are well enough to leave. You can thank my son for that decision." he told her glancing towards Legolas. She wondered what would have happened if Legolas hadn't found her, perhaps she would have bleed out. A darker side of her wondered if that would have been the best thing that could happen to her.

"King Thranduil," the phrase sounded odd on her tongue, she had never spoken to royalty before and she was quite unsure how to do so. "If I may ask, I would like to check my home." she paused for a moment fighting off the tears that threatened her. "To see if there is anything left."_ or anyone_ a optimistic side of her added. She shoved the thought away if she expected something good out of the journey she would only be more crushed.

"Very well, tomorrow at dawn you may go. Legolas will get you in the morning." he answered.

"Thank you." she said with a nod of her head before turning to Legolas.

Legolas walked her back to her room before bidding her a goodnight. He had asked if she wanted any food but she couldn't think of eating in her state now. She laid in the comfort of the bed staring at the intricate walls of her room waiting for sleep to find her.

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It took a long time but eventually sleep had found her. Before she knew it she was woken by Legolas who brought her a outfit that was better for riding. He showed her down to the stables and brought out a light grey horse for her. He told her the horses name was Garavon. She was petting the horse when she noticed Thranduil enter the stables along with a good amount of soldiers. Rather than the more fancy robes he was wearing shorter robes along with pants and riding boots. An ellon working in the stable brought out a large elk to the Elvenking.

"You're going with us?" she asked in a surprised tone.

"I knew your father, he came to me when he first wanted to build the house in the forest. It's not within my kingdom's reach but he was polite. I'm going to pay my respects." he told her before mounting the elk. She didn't reply but rather did the same as him and mounted her horse. She found herself disappointed when Legolas didn't get on a horse but returned to the palace. She felt more tense with it being her and Thranduil and of course the other soldiers.

The rode out Thranduil leading the way, Aeldes kept behind him in the middle of the group of guards. She didn't feel like getting left behind or attacked by something. Once they reached the borders of Mirkwood Thranduil signalled her to lead the rest of the way. She rode next to him in silence leading the group. It was quite a while till they reached her house.

Before her the sight of her families once beautiful burnt to the ground. She got of the horse moving closer to the house. She stepped over the rubble that used to be the walls. In the center of the house three burnt bodies laid, she could barely make out what was left of them. She fell to her knees in the ashes of her previous home before letting out a loud sob. Her hands covering her face. She didn't even give thought to the group behind her.

Soft footsteps sounded behind her but she paid no attention to them until she felt a soft hand on her shoulder. She looked up with teary eyes only to see Thranduil standing there with some form of empathy on his face. She was taken aback when he knelled down next to her before enveloping her in his arms. The action had seemed so foreign to him. He was old, she wasn't sure how old but with age came not only wisdom but pain, despair, and loss. She had not heard of a Elvenqueen in Mirkwood in her life but he had a son. That was only one loss she knew of she could only imagine how much he had been through in his life. Despite being a rather stoic king he could understand loss and he was kind enough to provide some comfort to a young elf that had lost everything.

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**Author's Note:** I usually prefer to write more but this felt like a good place to end it. I wasn't exactly sure how to portray Legolas because I haven't seen Desolation of Smaug yet so I'm not sure how his personality is in the movie. I'm seeing it this Friday so I'll be able to incorporate it into the story more.

Hope you enjoyed the chapter :)


	3. Chapter 3: A World Alone

It had been five days, her wounds were healing nicely only a faint aches of pain were around now. Legolas had showed her around the Mirkwood palace and told her of their history. The next day he had given her a bow and took her out into the forest to teach her, she had a very basic skill with a bow. She could fire it and hit her target at times but compared to the Mirkwood elves it was nothing. By the fourth day her skills were far sharper than before and she could say that she could defend herself decently. That night as she left the dining hall she knew it was time to leave. Her dreams haunted her, every night it was a new dark scene after the other. Her family's death weighed on her more with every day. She had to seek something to stop her grief. She wanted to hunt down the Iaoch. Her wounds were closed and she was well enough to go her own way. They had been kind to her and she didn't want to overstay her welcome and she knew if they heard her plans they would discourage her from them, so she planned to leave at dawn the next morning.

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Legolas entered his father's halls in the morning. He had grown fond of Aeldes in the time she had stayed there, she was very kind. The thought of her leaving on her own had troubled him, she was quite young and inexperienced and he wondered where she would go once she was healed. She no longer had anyone left.

"Father, I wanted to speak with you about Aeldes." he said approaching the throne.

"What about her?" he asked his gaze moving to his son.

"I would like to ask if she could stay here in Mirkwood." he asked carefully. "Her family is dead, she has no where to go. I taught her skills with a bow but I'm not even sure if she could make it out of the forest alive." he explained his concerns to his father. There was a long pause before Thranduil spoke.

"She has not caused any trouble and it wouldn't affect us any having one more elf with us." he answered.

"Thank you." Legolas said with a smile, excitement on his voice. "I'll go tell her now."

He made his way quickly the room she was staying in, before knocking he entered. When he didn't hear a reply he wondered if she was still sleeping so he entered. Rather than her in the bed he found a note laying on the table. He picked it up reading what it said.

_ Legolas,_

_ Thank you for everything you have done, if you hadn't helped me I would have died out there. My wounds have healed nicely so I felt it was time for me to leave, I didn't want to overstay my welcome. I'm sorry I left without any goodbyes I wanted to get an early start. The skills you taught me with a bow will come in handy in my travels. Once again thank you for everything and please tell your father that I thank him too for letting me stay._

_ Sincerely, Aeldes_

Legolas felt a bit of disappointment at the letter, he was quite surprised at her sudden leaving. He had thought she would be to afraid to trek through the forest alone. He returned to his father to inform him of what had happened.

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The sound of hooves hitting the ground heavy was loud in her ears as they galloped through the winding forest path. She had taken horse named Garavon, a part of her felt bad for taking the horse without asking but she knew the loss of one horse would not hurt them. She promised herself that she would return the horse one day. The forest was dark even with the morning light, many spiderwebs covered the trees as she got further into the forest. A part of her worried that she was not strong enough to make it out of Mirkwood but she reassured herself, she had made it through a lot now this wouldn't be the end. Her pace slowed as the path got more narrow and twisting. She much preferred the running pace, without the sound of running she could hear the woods creak and leaves rustle sending shivers up her spine.

She carefully watched her surroundings, her hand ready for her bow or sword whenever needed. She wanted to think she could get out of the forest without any trouble but she knew that would most likely not be the case. Her hands moved to pull her bow off her back, she felt as if she was being watched. Garavon let out a surprised noise coming to a stop as a loud sound moved above them. She quickly pulled an arrow and equipped the bow pointing to where the noise had been. There was nothing now, she scanned the woods for any movement. Another sound rushed behind her but when she turned nothing. Just as she was scanning the branches again a large monster lunged towards her. She released the arrow into it's head, it dropping to the ground dead. Her heart caught in her throat as she looked upon the corpse of the large spider.

"Go, go!" she shouted to Garavon, kicking her legs back encouraging him to start running. The path was narrow but she'd rather chance falling of the path than sticking around with the giant spiders. Her hands gripped the reins as the forest passed them by quickly. She had hoped that the only spider had been left back dead but when she saw another one climbing across the trees next to them she lost that hope. She held on tightly with her legs as she pulled her bow out again, aiming for the spider keeping up with them. She let the arrow go but it missed the spider. She pulled another arrow and missed again. Her hands gripped the bow now, knuckles turning white as she aimed again, this time it hitting the spider on it's back. The beast fell to the ground and she let out a breathe of relief. Another spider began chasing them and grabbed another arrow. As she attempted to take it out, another spider began pursuing them along with another. She began wondering if she would get out. Just as the thought hit her she saw a light at the end of the path. "We're almost there!" she shouted to Garavon. The horse picked up his speed as they approached the exit one of the spiders attempted to jump onto them but failed tumbling to the ground.

The broke through the small vines that covered the exit bursting into a sunlit field. She turned Garavon around to face the spiders. In the open and not moving they were a lot more vulnerable. She was quick and aimed a arrow at one spider quickly killing it. Before she could grab another arrow the other spider retreated back into the darkness of the Mirkwood forest. She let out another breath laying back on her horse for a moment. She let out a small laugh.

"I almost got killed by giant spiders." she was familiar of the giant spiders from tales from her sister. She couldn't believe that she had just faced them, on her own. She had never done anything like that before. Despite the sadness that still was with her she felt a sudden sense of hope. She had wondered if without her parents her life would come to a stand still. She had been wrong.

**Author's Note:** I'm so sorry this is super short, I didn't want to write more till I saw the movie. This is also pretty rushed, I'm leaving for camping tomorrow morning at 6:00 am and it's almost midnight right now but I wanted to get a new chapter out before I left, I'll be gone for a week but being out in the forest should give me some more inspiration for the story.

So Aeldes left Mirkwood but she will return, the next couple of chapters are going to be character development for her before she goes back. Hopefully everyone will enjoy it.

The movie was amazing! I won't spoil anything but the fighting scenes were so great. I just love the elves so much and Thranduil is so amazing, Lee Pace did a perfect job and definitely stole the show. The barrel scene was my favorite. Smaug came out great, those scenes were intense. I really like Bard a lot too, I wasn't expecting to like him as much as I do now. The movie was just altogether fantastic.

Thank you all for the reviews, favorites, and follows it's all very encouraging to me!


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